Effective PhD supervision and mentorship: a workbook based on experiences from South Africa and the Netherlands: South Africa- Netherlands Research Programme on Alternatives in Development (SANPAD) Dietz, A.J.; Jansen, J.D.; Wadee, A.A. Citation Dietz, A. J., Jansen, J. D., & Wadee, A. A. (2006). Effective PhD supervision and mentorship: a workbook based on experiences from South Africa and the Netherlands: South Africa- Netherlands Research Programme on Alternatives in Development (SANPAD). Amsterdam: Rozenberg Publishers. Retrieved from https://hdl.handle.net/1887/15364 Version: Not Applicable (or Unknown) License: Leiden University Non-exclusive license Downloaded from: https://hdl.handle.net/1887/15364 Note: To cite this publication please use the final published version (if applicable). Effective PhD Supervision and Mentorship Effective PhD Supervision and Mentorship A workbook based on experiences from South Africa and the Netherlands A.J. (Ton) Dietz, Jonathan D. Jansen, Ahmed A. Wadee South Africa-Netherlands research Programme on Alternatives in Development (SANPAD) Rozenberg Publishers (Amsterdam) - UNISA Press (Pretoria) 2006 © A.J. (Ton) Dietz, Jonathan D. Jansen, Ahmed A. Wadee, 2006 Cover design and PhD game: Ingrid Bouws, Amsterdam PhD Game Matrix by somebody at the The Edward Jenner Institute for Vaccine Research Compton, Newbury, Berkshire, RG20 7NN England who deserves the copyright. Editing and Layout: Saskia Stehouwer, SAVUSA All rights reserved. Save exceptions stated by the law, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system of any nature, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, included a complete or partial transcription, without the prior written permission of the publishers, application for which should be addressed to the publishers: Unisa Press Rozenberg Publishers PO Box 392 Bloemgracht 82hs UNISA 0003 1015 TM Amsterdam South Africa The Netherlands tel: (+27) 12 429-3081 Tel.: (+) 31(0) 20 625 54 29 fax: (+27) 12 426-3449 Fax: (+) 31 (0) 20 620 33 95 [email protected] [email protected] www.unisa.ac.za www.rozenbergps.com ISBN: 1-86888-439-2 ISBN: 90-5170- 877-7 Contents Foreword by the South African Minister of Education, the Honourable Naledi Pandor 1 1 Introduction................................................................................................................... 3 1.1 Background to this workbook................................................................................ 3 1.2 Workbook objectives ............................................................................................. 5 1.3 Acknowledgments.................................................................................................. 8 1.4 The state of doctoral supervision in South Africa ................................................. 9 1.5 The state of PhD training in the Netherlands, and within CERES in particular.. 15 1.6 Common problems, shared inspiration ................................................................ 20 2 Guidelines for supervisors .......................................................................................... 21 2.1 Procedures for admission and approval of PhD proposals .................................. 21 2.2 Aims of a successful PhD trajectory.................................................................... 22 2.3 Institutional arrangements.................................................................................... 25 2.4 The importance of a sound research design......................................................... 27 2.5 Issues and dilemmas: South African perspectives ............................................... 33 2.6 Issues and dilemmas: Dutch perspectives............................................................ 36 3 Guidelines for Mentors ............................................................................................... 41 3.1 Introduction.......................................................................................................... 41 3.2 Key aspects of mentoring..................................................................................... 42 3.3 Interactions between supervisors, mentors and students: Scenario games.......... 50 A Three examples of games............................................................................. 50 B Additional game ........................................................................................... 60 C Games to handle a crisis............................................................................... 61 3.4 Organising supervisor and mentor training.......................................................... 65 3.5 Literature.............................................................................................................. 67 4 The relationship between PhD candidate and supervisor ........................................... 69 4.1 Styles of supervision: A typology........................................................................ 69 4.2 Types of supervision ............................................................................................ 69 4.3 Types of PhD candidates, culture and dynamics ................................................. 74 4.4 Voices of supervisors........................................................................................... 80 4.5 Observations from the literature .......................................................................... 85 4.6 Conclusions.......................................................................................................... 88 5 References and (Annotated) Bibliography on Research Supervision and Research Methods.......................................................................................................................... 91 5.1 References............................................................................................................ 91 5.2 A selection of useful books on research methods................................................ 92 5.3 Annotated bibliography...................................................................................... 100 Appendices................................................................................................................... 117 Appendix A: SANPAD (also see: http://www.sanpad.org.za) ................................ 117 Appendix B: CERES................................................................................................ 120 Appendix C: Participants in the two SANPAD and one CERES supervisory workshops ................................................................................................................ 122 Appendix D: The South African and Dutch systems of higher education............... 127 Appendix E: Valuation approaches in CERES and EADI....................................... 132 Foreword by the South African Minister of Education, the Honourable Naledi Pandor It is my pleasure to introduce this new publication, a result of SANPAD’s Research Capacity Building Initiative Programme. This publication is an important milestone in the longer term strategy, identified in the National Plan for Higher Education, to promote research excellence and quality. I am confident that this publication will be of benefit to every supervisor and PhD candidate it reaches. The Research Capacity Building Initiative of SANPAD has played a remarkable role in actively developing research capacity and a culture conducive to research, aimed particularly at researchers from historically disadvantaged communities. I hope that the beneficiaries of this project, namely the higher education and research institutions, researchers and staff in both South Africa and the Netherlands, young researchers and particularly women from historically disadvantaged backgrounds in South Africa, will be in a better position to meet new development challenges and equipped to participate in the international research community. SANPAD’s continued commitment and successful contribution to stimulating and promoting quality research and to producing research output that is useful for development purposes is commendable. This publication is important for several reasons. In particular, it provides impetus for improvements, both in South Africa and in the Netherlands, in PhD supervision. As a training guide on supervision, it provides scenarios on styles and experiences of supervision. It also offers strategies for dealing with some of the challenges and provides options for PhD supervision and mentoring. This publication, by providing a valuable insight into best practice models for PhD supervision and mentoring, appropriate to the context of South Africa, will hopefully contribute to the development of the next generation of researchers and academics who are key to a vibrant research and innovating system. I wish to express appreciation and thanks to the authors who have prepared this Manual, together with the various people and institutions that have worked with them. I commend the efforts and interventions from SANPAD in support of our national goals in education and research. G.N.M. Pandor, MP 1 Introduction 1.1 Background to this workbook The mission of the South Africa - Netherlands research Programme on Alternatives in Development (SANPAD) is to promote a high quality research culture and to develop research capacity with the aim of contributing to the development priorities in South Africa. SANPAD recognises